FM 'wants UK clarity on press plan'

Mar 18 2013

The First Minister has requested a meeting with the Prime Minister to seek clarity on his approach to press regulation.

Alex Salmond wants a meeting with David Cameron to discuss what impact the royal charter to establish a press regulator will have on Scotland where law and press regulation is devolved.

The royal charter idea was not considered by either of the judges tasked with investigating media misconduct north and south of the border in the wake of the phone hacking scandal, said Mr Salmond.

The First Minister is facing similar calls for clarity from opposition parties at Holyrood after a Scottish Government-appointed panel recommended a mandatory press regulator backed by law. They have called for an urgent debate to give Mr Salmond a forum to explain his intentions, amid claims that his advisers have devised the most "draconian" system of press regulation in the Western world.

Mr Salmond said: "Now that agreement has been reached in Westminster on a royal charter it is right that we consider the implications of that approach in Scotland. We have sought clarification from the UK Government that they have properly considered Scottish responsibilities, and I have invited them to Scotland to discuss their approach with the leaders of all parties."

Former solicitor-general for Scotland Lord McCluskey chaired a panel of legal experts and journalists to consider a Scottish approach to the recommendations of the Leveson Report into press standards.

Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont has written to Mr Salmond to demand a full debate on the issue as soon as possible. She said: "This week's business in Parliament is government-controlled. I believe that we should have a statement and debate on the report's findings."

Scottish Conservatives leader Ruth Davidson said: "Alex Salmond needs to clear up exactly what is going on here. His panel proposed some of the most draconian measures in the civilised world. Now that he's had time to digest this, he must explain as a matter of urgency what his intentions are for the Scottish press.

"If he continues to stall, the suspicion will be that he wants to hold the threat of state control over Scotland's newspapers on the run-up to the referendum."

The Scottish Government said it is too early for such a debate. A spokesman for the First Minister said: "The appropriate time to discuss these issues in parliament is after the cross-party process has reached its conclusion. As the First Minister said on Friday, we expect that to be after the Easter parliamentary recess."